Personal safety and security concerns have caused many persons to carry concealed firearms and other types of crime deterrent devices such as chemical mace. In particular, women have been increasingly apt to carry a concealed weapon on their person. However, often times the construction or style of a woman's clothing does not permit proper concealment of the firearm. In addition, a concealed handgun cannot be safely or comfortably carried in many if not most types of women's apparel. Such a weapon is also likely to be awkward, time consuming and inconvenient to access when needed.
Many women carry a bag of some sort, such as a purse, handbag, pocketbook, etc. to store and carry items such as keys, money, a driver's license, credit cards and assorted personal items. However, these types of containers are usually inappropriate for carrying a concealed firearm. Many handbags are sizeable and filled with a variety of items. A handgun or similar weapon is typically fairly heavy and is likely to fall to the bottom of the bag. It can also become mixed with and potentially misplaced within other items carried in the bag. As a result, the firearm may be difficult and time consuming to locate, which is very undesirable in an emergency situation. The owner of the firearm may have to fumble around and search through the bag in order to locate and retrieve the weapon.
Although many purses and handbags do include individual pockets and compartments, these remain largely unsatisfactory for use in storing a concealed firearm. For one thing, the pockets and compartments in conventional handbags and purses are not specially designed or dedicated for use in holding a concealed firearm. They may be filled with change and other miscellaneous items that again can interfere with prompt location and retrieval of the firearm. Moreover, it is quite significant that the storage compartments in existing bags and purses are not properly configured to secure the firearm in a static orientation within the bag. Rather, the position of the firearm is likely to shift and move as the bag or purse is being carried. Not only can this further disorganize the contents of the purse, it can also impede the owner's ready access to the firearm in the event of an emergency. Moreover, if the firearm is not held in a perfectly static condition within the purse, with the barrel of the firearm pointing in a downward direction, serious and potentially deadly safety hazard may result. If the firearm shifts position while the bag is carried, the barrel of the firearm may turn and point upwardly or at some other angle that may be extremely dangerous to the owner or passersby in the event that the firearm accidentally discharges inside the bag.
I have determined that a significant need exists for a means to conveniently carry firearms of various sizes in a concealed, yet secure, safe and organized manner within virtually any conventional purse, handbag or similar item. I have further determined that it is critical that the firearm be constrained in a static position within the handbag so that it does not move during transport and create the safety hazard described above. The organizer should be constructed so that the firearm may be quickly, conveniently and effectively accessed in the event of an emergency.